Illini wrestler John Dergo won his first Big Ten Championship title on Sunday afternoon by defeating Iowa’s Phil Keddy by a score of 5-3.

The senior didn’t allow a takedown in the match while notching two of his own in the second and third periods. And yet after the match, when most athletes would be celebrating their accomplishment, Dergo was already critiquing his performance with head coach Jim Heffernan.

“Right after the match, me and Coach Heffernan, we talked about a lot of things. There were a few things I needed to do,” Dergo said. “And that was right after the match, right as soon as I walked off, what I could have done better.”

In particular, Dergo was “disappointed” that he wasn’t able to score a takedown in the first period and build a bigger margin of victory.

“He doesn’t train to be two points better than the competition,” teammate Jordan Blanton said. “He comes in every day trying to get better and better and dominate. He wants to be able to score in the first, second and third period and keep building on his lead and keep getting better as the match goes on and as his opponent is wearing down,” he said.

It is that dedication that has propelled Dergo to a 31-2 record this season as well as a No. 2 national ranking, ensuring that Dergo will be one of the favorites to win a national title at next week’s NCAA Championships. It’s more than just dedication that has gotten Dergo where he is now, though.

“(The mental aspect) is 90 percent of his game right now,” Heffernan said. “Skill-wise, everybody’s good (at this point in the season). At the national tournament, everybody’s going to be good, everybody’s going to be in shape. The mental side of it is what’s going to make him a champion or an All-American as opposed to just a qualifier,” he said.

Dergo’s mental approach is something that others have taken note of, and none more so than Blanton, Dergo’s practice partner.

“He’s been battle-tested. He’s beaten guys that he wasn’t supposed to beat, and he’s really put it on guys he wasn’t supposed to beat, and I think that that all comes back to the mental aspect,” Blanton said. “He’s one of the most mentally tough people I’ve ever met, and he refuses to give in. He refuses to take a backseat to anybody.”

According to Heffernan, that approach of refusing to lose is what has made the biggest difference for Dergo.

“I think that’s the biggest thing that has changed for him is his mental approach,” Heffernan said. “I think he’s wrestling proactively instead of thinking so much all the time now, and he’s wrestling full speed. Last year he did it in spurts but not consistently, and now he’s doing it from start to finish,” he said.

In the end, it all comes down to confidence.

“(I start every match) believing I’m the best wrestler and going out there and believing I’m in better shape than the guy and I’m a better wrestler than the guy (I’m facing),” Dergo said. “That’s what I believe going into every match. As long as I know I’m going to go in there and wrestle, and if I wrestle my best match, I feel no one can beat me.”